Futures Markets
Gasoline inventories down before hurricane assessment in
Gasoline inventories fell by 500,000 barrels last week to 194.4 million barrels, according to Wednesday’s US Department of Energy weekly stockpiles report, the ninth week in a row that the US gasoline supply declined.
The data does not take into consideration the impact of Hurricane Katrina on supplies, as the report covers the week […]
US companies measure damage to production by hurricane
Oil companies have begun the process of assessing the damage to their Gulf Coast and Gulf of Mexico facilities and are trying to figure out how many days, weeks, or months it will take to get production back up to normal.
As of Wednesday, 95 percent of gas and oil production in the Gulf […]
Gasoline prices sharply up on Katrina impact
Oil prices rose sharply again on Tuesday amid continuing uncertainty about how much damage Hurricane Katrina has done to US oil production facilities, although it was known that two offshore drilling rigs had been dislodged from their moorings and were floating free in the Gulf of Mexico, and nine refineries in Louisiana and Mississippi were […]
Hurricane Katrina hits production and prices soar
Crude oil, gasoline, and natural gas prices all soared on Monday as Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf Coast of the United States as one of the strongest storms ever to reach US shores.
Refineries were hit particularly hard, taking at least 1.8 million barrels per day worth of refining capacity off-line. With refineries throughout the […]
Crude falls slightly but supply continues to worry
Crude oil prices fell on Friday but were up from where they were at the beginning of the week.
The major issue that affected prices was supply, with the weather and sabotage providing worrisome news.
Hurricane Katrina entered the Gulf of Mexico on Friday but the course she would take still wasn’t clear, […]
Crude up and down as investors expect rally to fail
Crude oil prices were up and down on Thursday as profit-taking and new supply fears based on concerns about weather in the Gulf of Mexico had their effect on investors.
Wednesday’s US inventories data, with gasoline supplies falling much more than had been expected, also provided incentive for prices to rise, as did data showing […]
Hawaii sets caps on wholesale gasoline
The state of Hawaii has become the first US state to set caps on the wholesale price of gasoline in an attempt gain some control of the skyrocketing prices consumers must pay at the pump. Hawaii has the highest gasoline prices in the United States. On Wednesday, the price of regular unleaded gasoline […]
Crude up as gasoline stocks fall
Crude oil prices were up again on Wednesday as gasoline stockpiles in the US fell much more than they had been expected to.
US Department of Energy data revealed that gasoline inventories fell by 3.2 million barrels last week with demand up 1.6 percent over last year at this time and stockpiles down 7 […]
Crude falls slightly on inventory expectations
Crude oil prices fell again on Tuesday, so that by midday October delivery West Texas Intermediate crude on the New York Mercantile Exchange was trading at $65.15 per barrel, down 50 cents, while Brent crude October contracts were down by 36 cents to $64.14.
The decline in prices came as investors began to look […]
Crude oil prices on rise despite economic impact
Supply concerns brought on by power outages in Iraq, bad weather in the North Sea, and civil unrest in Ecuador were instrumental in another rise in crude oil prices on Monday.
And on top of all that, the International Petroleum Exchange had to halt trading for five hours due to a computer glitch in […]
CNPC bids on PetroKazakhstan
State-owned Chinese oil company CNPC launched on Monday a bid of $4.18 billion for PetroKazakhstan. Acquisition of the company would give China access to PetroKazakhstan’s 150,000 barrels per day of oil production, only a small fraction of China’s daily consumption. Still, it is considered a strategic investment for China, which is the second-largest […]
Crude prices rise while forecasts raised
The crude oil price roller coaster was up again on Friday after having been down in the middle of the week. West Texas Intermediate crude oil for September delivery was up $2.08 to $65.35 per barrel in electronic trading on Friday as contracts through June of 2008 traded above the $60 level. […]
Crude prices down amid mixed message on economic impact
Crude oil prices were down again on Thursday amid mixed messages over the effect higher prices are having on the economy, especially in the United States.
On one hand Wal-Mart, the world’s largest retailer, has said that higher oil prices were cutting into consumer spending, and data released during the week have shown that inflation […]
Oil down sharp but gasoline reaches record
Profit-taking and higher than expected gains in crude oil inventories in the US sent crude oil prices down sharply during the day on Wednesday, although a much larger decrease than expected in gasoline inventories sent gasoline prices into record territory before retreating later.
October contracts for Brent crude on the International Petroleum Exchange fell […]
Nymex, WTI, and Brent: prices continue to rise
With the weekly US crude oil inventories report due on Wednesday, declines in gasoline stockpiles are expected again, and some analysts expect crude oil prices to rise again. Prices are also being helped higher by concerns that the system of refineries is being taxed beyond its limits under the burden of operating so close […]
Crude oil reaches new records
Crude oil prices soared again on Friday, with West Texas Intermediate September contracts on the New York Mercantile Exchange going as high as a record $67.10 per barrel before settling to a close $1.06 higher than Thursday’s close at $66.86 per barrel.
WTI gained 6.5 percent this week, and the front month US crude […]
IEA warns oil inflation not yet reaching consumers
The International Energy Agency on Thursday warned that the world’s economy has not yet seen the full impact of rising crude oil prices.
It said that consumers should be ready for further rises in the cost of energy because the economy is currently still reacting to last year’s oil price hikes. It said […]
WTI reaches record $66 barrel
At midday in New York on Thursday, September delivery West Texas Intermediate crude oil on the New York Mercantile Exchange had gained 80 cents to $65.70 per barrel, backing off from a new record high of $66 per barrel in early trading.
By the close, however, WTI added another 10 cents for a gain […]
Strong US inventories temper record oil prices
According to the US Energy Information Administration on Wednesday, crude oil inventories in the US were up by 2.8 million barrels in the week ending August 5, based largely on increased imports.
The US imported 11 million barrels of oil per day on the week, up by 101,000 barrels per day from the previous […]
Crude falls on profit-taking before inventories
Crude oil prices fell on Tuesday, with the declines coming on profit-taking after Monday’s new record prices. Prices had been expected to keep rising on Tuesday but there were no new developments concerning events and issues that had caused Monday’s price spike.
There was also a feeling among some investors and analysts that […]